Srinagar, July 10: A 1996 case involving separatist slogans, assault on public servants, and rioting has led to a formal federal chargesheet against six senior Hurriyat Conference leaders. The National Investigation Agency presented the findings before the NIA Special Court in Jammu, detailing a planned conspiracy during a funeral procession in Srinagar three decades ago. The case was recently reassigned to the central agency by the Ministry of Home Affairs after decades of initial handling by the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
The official chargesheet names prominent regional figures, though the state of the accused varies due to the passage of time. The agency stated that proceedings against Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Abdul Ganie Lone, and Mohd. Yaqoob Wakeel have abated due to their deaths during the course of the proceedings. The surviving accused, including Shabir Ahmad Shah, Javid Ahmad Mir, and Shakeel Ahmad Bakshi, face multiple counts under the Ranbir Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.
According to the prosecution, the political leaders utilized the emotional atmosphere of the funeral procession of militant Hilal Ahmad Beigh to deliberately target law enforcement. The agency further alleged that armed militants had mingled with the procession and opened indiscriminate fire at police personnel, resulting in injuries to several police officials. Security vehicles were heavily damaged by stone-pelting during the confrontation at Srinagar’s Naaz Crossing, which investigators describe as a coordinated assault.
The probe concluded that the gathering was a deliberate effort to project political defiance against the state. The agency declared that the violence was part of a larger and pre-planned criminal conspiracy aimed at using the funeral procession as a platform to propagate separatist ideology. Officials maintained that the leaders delivered inflammatory speeches to provoke public disorder, while the anti-terror agency noted that further investigation is still ongoing to uncover additional aspects of the case.
